That thing with the billiard balls killed me. They can't be bothered to upkeep the pool table mechanics but they can send a security guard out to actively sabotage the sparse fun that the guests ARE experiencing.

That man taking all the balls from an active game and saying "Game's Over" seems quite on brand for what I'd expect from the title of the video

The fact that the library is just books the crew of the costa classica left behind is SENDING me

As a graphic designER I CROAKED at the Chinese copyrighted stock photo wall art. Absolutely amazing.

I guarantee you that the tape over the smoke alarm was done by previous passengers so they could smoke in the room, and just wasn't noticed by cleaning staff.

This is the most depressing cruise ship I've ever seen. It's like a floating retirement home, but with no people.

I was shocked when you started revealing the prices. For how jank everything is I was expecting it to at least be cheap to match, but you can get the same value for your money on a low end royal carribbean cruise, have a blast, AND not worry about whether the carpet in major areas of the ship is growing moss! That's what truly makes this the worst cruise. If this had been an absolute bottom barrel price, I'd totally get why you'd sail on this. As it is, I think you'd probably get better value for your money finding a game of 3 card monte and betting it all on the left cup.

Corn lasagna isn't real. It can't hurt you. Corn lasagna:

Imagine the "wear and tear" on the areas you can't see? Like the kitchen or the engine room.

Bright Sun Travels put more effort into making this video than the owners have in their cruise line

Went on this cruise just before Christmas. The pool table is still broke and the netting over the pickle ball court was down on one corner. We easily found seating around the pool and buffet. The back pool isn't at all accessible for some in a wheelchair. I enjoyed the food in both the buffet and Fins. Others in my group order $25 steaks that were tough and tasteless. We played trivia games and won a lot of margaritas. I didn't buy the drink package and stuck with the free water, lemonade and juice in the buffet. I enjoyed the dueling pianos and theatre shows. You forgot to include the mandatory tips and fuel surcharge that will add $200 to your cost...and billed to your CC after you leave port.

Emmi's face at 12:40 reacting to the entertainment was priceless, it made me belly laugh. I've had a moment like that on at least every cruise I've been on.

If the passenger rooms and public spaces are so sketchy, what must the crew quarters look like?😬

"Take a picture in front of the Titanic staircase" Yeah, that's definitely what I want to be thinking about on my questionable ocean adventure aboard a slightly janky ship. 😂

I just got off this ship yesterday, you are being generous with the scores. I have been on a few other cruises including a now defunct cruise that is laid up grounded on a Mexican shore now abandoned and even that ship was better when I went as a kid. There is now an extra gratuity charge and fuel surcharge added to your onboard acct after you board. Which on this cruise came out to an extra $198, so with cruise fare of two adults and a child, for this 2 night Bahama cruise, the final bill came a rough $756 after fare, taxes, port fees, gratuity, and fuel surcharge. That’s nothing else, no extra packages, drinks, souvenirs, taxi or bus to beach, nothing. There are way better options for your money out there. Great for single person or a couple that may live within an hour of the ship for a couple days to kill, other than that it’s not worth it at all.

The elevator speaking in Italian is absolute greatness! That and the scotch tape over the smoke detector. You just cant find quality like that anymore! LOL

Eddy Burback and Ted Nivison did a video a while back where they visited every Margaritaville restaurant/resort location in North America. The only thing they didn’t check out was the ship. After watching this video, I think Eddy and Ted would’ve been glad they didn’t go anywhere near the ship.

Them ruining your pool game is so funny to me because there was literally no reason to do that. It’s not like they were really losing money. If the thing was broken, people couldn’t pay to play it anyway? Idk either way it feels pretty salty.

6:42 "Wine... pairs well with water." France and Italy have left the chat.

This seems like the quintessential nightmare cruise. Thank you for enduring what you did so we don't have to!

Just canceled our margaritaville at sea cruise! I am so happy I saw this video when we could still get a full refund lol.

I'm so incredibly happy this channel exists. KZfaq needs more content like this - honest travel reviews from an unbiased source yet still with HIGH production value. Incredible stuff, Jake.

At 31:27 “Pairs well with water.” My assumption is any wine that includes “pairs with water” is probably mostly water itself. 😂

I sailed professionally both Naval and Merchant and I can tell you ALL of the ships, except the ones just out of the shipyard or from the builder suffer mechanically. If you see the black smoke from the stack...that an indication of engine wear and time for an overhaul but these ships run almost continuously so the wear and tear is intense

the season pass thing is so fascinating as someone who almost worked on cruise ships and went to school for hospitality and tourism. a lot of older people choose to die on cruise ships, it's so common that there are morgues in the ship and it's talked about beyond the industry. the pass almost feels like it's encouraging it, plus the target audience for this would be older people. it gives me a weird feeling

I can’t stop laughing at the employee coming out of nowhere to steal the pool table balls 😂

Wes palm resident here. as soon as you asked “is there really anything to do on board other than get drunk” and i was like nope. if you’re gettin on this boat, you’re either gonna be face down drunk or being accosted by people who are about to be face down drunk

You three deserve an award for getting on this OLD TIRED SHIP, bravo for your self sacrifice. There are people who this ship will be perfect for. You guys are not part of that group. I don’t cruise, ever, but this was so enlightening! I got a good chuckle out of your adventures. Thanks!😂

I'm so genuinely saddened by the poole table - firstly, it should be free anyway! second, why would that security guard decide he was going to take it away. It feels very unfair and rubbish.

This is so surreal for me. I'm a resident of Grand Bahama Island, so I've been on this ship so many times. For Bahamians, we use this as a ferry, more or less. It's often cheaper than flying out of Grand Bahama, and the biggest advantage is that since many Grand Bahamians shop in Florida in bulk and bring stuff back, using this ship is very easy for large loads. Great video!

love that NOBODY was at the jimmy buffet live movie experience lol literally NOONE, even the people running the bar are like we'd rather just play the tunes instead of listen to that again lol Could you imagine this is your full time job too? Just every single day listening to Jimmy Buffet my head would explode.

This is one of the videos i have on in the background when feeling down. I feel like ive shown every person who matters to me this video. We watched this video as a family leading up to our family cruise in the Caribbean Just, so passionate and humorous

i can’t get over the fact that emmi got locked in a public bathroom- that’s insane

The saddest part for me is that the Costa Classica was such a beautiful ship with so much effort and care put into it, but now it’s just a sold out dead queen of the seas.

So true story: toward the end of 2019 I was part of a group that chartered the Grand Celebration (after we didn't have enough people to fill a Royal Caribbean ship)... in 2020 the ship was sent to scrap, RIP Grand Celebration. but our group still jokes that we defiled the ship so bad they couldn't let anyone else on it lmao.

Thanks for making this video. After watching a lot of cruise content lately I became convinced that all cruises are good but now I know that there are still operators with subpar cleanliness, dining options and activities!

This cruise really gives you the “you get what you paid for” vibes.

I used to work for a company that advertized these "free" cruises as a prize but you still had to pay almost 300 worth of taxes. What people didn't realize is that they'd have to sit through a time share presentation. They were better off catching a Carnival cruise for a better value at around the same price.

You did a great job not bashing a cruise line that was essentially horrible

Your video convinced me to book this cruise. I need to experience North America's Worst Cruise Ship! Wish me luck.

RIP to a legend 🙏🏻 Even though your cruise sucked, you certainly didn’t 😔💗🌴

I feel like anything Jimmy Buffet-related is best shared with friends, and your review provides a good case for that argument. And yes, I also can’t believe there isn’t an area called “Jimmy’s Buffett” on this ship.

Can tell you the reason the crew were the best was they were trying to make up for the crapfest they were working in. I work at a motel that’s falling apart in a tourist town, and the new mngmnt is all about just making $$. So on a night the rates are priced high bc of an event, I’m just trying to do what I can for the guests, hoping to distract them from the mildew in their rms or the pcs of rusted ceiling falling in the parking lot.

As a European I have no idea what a “margaritaville” is but I can safely say after this review the overnight car ferry from the UK to France is nicer than this cruise 🤣

this the perfect accompaniment to eddy burback and ted nivision’s videos on margaritaville. i love all the historical background in your videos

When Margaritaville first started they were offering free cruises for Military. I looked at going. When looking at their drink packages and shore excursions it was going to cost me more than what I'd pay for a 3 day cruise to the Bahamas with Royal Caribbean. I've seen tons of videos on their cruise ships and they seem like they're a motel 6 at Sea.

Industry leader you gotta be kiddin me a diesel,powered vessel in complete disarray I don’t think so buddy

19:21 Missed opportunity for the gym to not be called the Gymmy Buffett.

My buddy and I went on a 10 day cruise on this ship as it was repositioning from FL to the west coast. There were only 160 passengers on our trip, so the activities, food, etc were all scaled way back. It was not even remotely a normal cruise experience, but we expected that. The crew (who outnumbered guests 3 to 1) were all fantastic, and being such a long trip with few guests, my friend and I got to know a lot of the crew very well and remain friends to this day. We both look back quite fondly on that trip, despite the lack of normal cruise ship amenities.

Cruise ships give me the creeps, and this one didn't disappoint. I enjoyed your narration, and I've subscribed. This is a great example of ya get what ya pay for. It's Temu's version of Margaritaville. 😆🤣

Just heard this ship failed a surprise health inspection. Quelle surprise....

I was a commercial diver in South Florida for a few years. We did a lot of work on the celebration. We swam the surveys on her, and did the hull/prop cleanings. That boat was a pile of junk. It was a RORO ferry, turned into a sewage stinking cruise ship.

I was hoping when you were describing the places to hydrate while showing the rain footage of the deck one of the options would've been to capture rain water and drink it.

Great video!. I have to admit that it was like a train wreck that I couldn’t turn away from, but you presented it expertly. Just kinda sad to think that people who went on this actually had to deal with such a delapidated vessel. Crazy!.

Look, I am a snob. I have always been repelled and strangely fascinated by cruising. Your review makes me fascinated with the 1980's jinxed ship experience tricked up just enough to be the bottom feeder in a rather deep cruise ecosystem. A "cruise" just short enough to be a laugh and say "guess what I did?" and get bragging rights. The Margaritaville is certainly on my bucket list now . P.S I survived Contiki Tours 14 countries in 10 days bus tour in the late 1980's, so I am match fit for this.

Someone definitely hotboxed that cabin lol

Ah, the Grand Bahama ferry! It's cheaper and comfier than the legit ferry, has a good deal for one-way trips, and has a option to basically bring a crate of stuff with you for big shopping trips to Florida. While it clearly sucks as a cruise, it's great for residents of the island! As an aside, I hope you were able to record any of the interesting abandoned places while you were here, as there are some really cool ones, such as the Crowne Plaza/Princess Resort, International Bazaar, the Xanadu hotel, or the old Arawak hotel. All places killed by various hurricanes, but with uniquely interesting backstories and in varying states of preservation. Unfortunately not much footage of them exist on the internet so it would neat to see a proper video on them.

You have encouraged me to book this cruise, looks like a blast if you're into weird things.

My wife and I looked into this. I’m sure most people, like ourselves, weren’t looking for a budget cruise. We were actually looking for a margaritaville experience. With that being said, previous videos of the ship, made us question whether we even wanted to try it.

If the Margaritaville brand wants to maintain a good reputation, they need to be more careful with the business ventures that they are allowing to use their name.

I love how security quickly broke up your pool game once they saw that they were getting stiffed on they themselves trying to stiff people 🙄. I wonder if they ever actually fixed the pool table because if they're not going to do so, you might as well let people have their fun. Also...it was, what, $2 a game? The ship is going to need to make a LOT more money than that measely pool table would bring in if they have any hope of actually drawing more peoole in 😂.

I like that your friend decided to have as much as possible, even on such a disappointing ship.

This is kinda adorable, but it’s a shame it wasn’t great. I love how old the ship looks and feels, and I wish there were more retro shipping experiences out there.

I have no intention of going on this cruise but the content is just so damn entertaining I watch it in it's entirety. Good work.

No one should travel without a black light

Great Video as always. Just further context on the vessel itself. The Costa Classica was due to be delivered to the Cammell Laird Shipyard in Merseyside Uk back in 2000 to have what’s known as Jumboization performed to it which essentially was a £51m Mid section added. This was the first of two vessels to be extended with the sister ship Costa Romantica following in 2001. However just to clarify the situation around the Shipyard “ going bust”, Costa Cruise lines decided in 1997 which vessels would be extended, however that same year Carnival cruise lines purchased Costa and proceeded in conducting a 2 year fleet assessment of Legacy cruise lines that were in its portfolio. Costa/Carnival during this period commissioned the extension of both vessels and awarded the contract to the Uk yard, which constructed the Classicas mid section and launched it ahead of final completion. The vessel itself was enroute from The Mediterranean with many Shipyard workers about preparing the sections that required Splitting, when Costa/Carnival decided to cancel the project and turning the vessel around and removing the staff aboard. Due to the nature of the contract that was agreed at award, the Shipyard bourn the cost of the Labour/Materials/Equipment purchasing until delivery when Costa/Carnival would have made an acceptance milestone payment. This eventually caused the Shipyard to declare bankruptcy and led to the receivers selling the mid section for scrap. Costa/Carnival bankrupted the shipyard by failure to honour the contract. I’m 💯 Knowledgeable on this subject as I was an apprentice at the Cammell Laird Shipyard during this time and worked on building the midsection

“Pairs well with water” on the wine I’m DYIIING

I always thought the ship was a wrongful choice for the Margaritaville Brand. Side note, we just were on the Disney Fantasy last week, and boy, even the crew had not great things to say about the new Wish, even further your points on that ship. additionally, one of our engines died on the way to cast away. So they gave us all a $250 credit as well as 25% off next cruise so we may go again next year.

You can catch a high speed ferry from Ft Lauderdale to one of several of the islands of the Bahamas for around $200 one way or $300 roundtrip. Trip is 2 hours or more depending on destination. They also have package deals with hotels. The ferries aren’t very luxurious but you’re only on them for a short time. Much more cost effective than a cruise

“Gold by the foot” at 17:24 has me in tears

You are very brave for sailing on this ship. As soon as I saw the rooms I would've gotten off.

It wouldn't surprise me if the CDC Ship inspectors gave this ship a score of 23/100

To summarise the best bit was a pool table on free vend 😂

Never in my life would I set foot on any cruise ship but these videos are interesting

I would definitely be interested in hearing your take on Cruise Recommendations for first timers. Especially couples, no kids, etc. Great work as always man!

The wine saying 'pairs well with water' is insane

I am cracking up that you went on this ship! I have yet to see a vid of something you've actually been really happy with, which makes it that much more hilarious. At least it's consistent! 😂

dude for real u deserve like at least 2 million more subs been watching you for years and 163k doesn’t feel like enough subs for the quality of ur videos . i’m impressed jake. been watching you since i was a little kid :)

"Aggressively average." I love it. LOL I need to remember that one.

Super quick nostalgia blast here: I actually sailed on the Ocean Breeze way back in 1998 on my first and thus far only cruise. She was indeed an old ship, though at the time I didn't realize how old or that she was a minor maritime legend, formerly the Southern Cross, one of the first ocean liners with all-aft machinery layout. Despite her age though, I have nothing but fond memories of her, from the sail-away party with an Eastern European band singing a hilariously accented version of "Celebrate Good Times, Come On!" to a lovely violin piano duo that we loosely followed around the ship, right down to the all of the bartenders recognizing my father's multicolored tam hat and greeting us with "Hey, Bob Marley, mon!" and mixing the parents' drinks extra strong (the fact they tipped well probably helped). Overall, say what you will about the cruise line's reputation overall, I have no horse in that race, but the Ocean Breeze at least was a grand ship. I was actually a little brokenhearted to learn she'd been scrapped in 2003.

Note from a veteran cruiser--Avoid short cruises like the plague. ---Low class passengers drunk are during whole cruise.

Love this! 😂 Food looks so mediocre, Thank You for doing the leg work and research. Who's the hot guy with the beard?!?!?! 🥰

sounds like you made the best of a less than prestigious experience. It always makes for a better story when things are sketchy and you've got great people along. Super fun video, thanks for doing this. Subscribed!

Thank you so much for continually finding stuff that I never knew existed or even knew I wanted reviewed. Also this ship sounds cursed ☠️

Great show. Good info Thanks.

I have never heard of this ship and totally enjoyed this video. I laughed out loud about the pool table situation. I just subscribed!

Sounds and looks like this ship doesn't deserve the name Margatritaville

I refuse to do budget cruises. I will happily spend $2000 for a week cruise on a proper cruise line like Royal Caribbean and have fun than $500 for a weekend cruise and be miserable.

When are we getting the next cruise ship video? I love these 😊

This is so informative! Great job, fantastic reporting!🌻🌼🐝 Keep it up 🙌

Jake, you're one of the best content creators on this platform. I've been following you from the BrightSunGaming days and the hard work you've put into your KZfaq career has really shown. You never let us down with amazing content!!

Thank you for this review Jake. It was great. I’m a Florida native and we’ve been looking into going on one of these. We may still try it, but I think my standards will just be super low. We typically sail Disney and have recently gotten into MSC cruises. I have the same environmentality gripe with MSC. They swear they’re the greenest ships on the water, but the amount of paper you get onboard is bananas. Keep doing these!! I’m a cruise ship fanatic too so stuff like this is awesome

"We brought out a black light..." I'm dying!!! 🤣

I can't help but notice the NATO Theme Pillows in some of the shots

We went on “Regal Empress” (a precursor shown early in the video) on the same itinerary on one of its last sailings. We wanted to sail on the historic ocean liner Olympia before it went to the scrapper due to SOLAS requirements. Despite its age, it appeared to be in better shape than this ship and had some genuine historical value. I was impressed the crew was actively painting and varnishing and most of the public spaces (not all) were OK, with the dining room being beautiful. The food was consistently terrible but the staff was very friendly. I have no regrets about getting to sail on Regal Empress, due to its historical value, but would never sail on this if for no other reason than I find every Jimmy Buffett song formulaic and trying. This is a hard no. Thanks for this great video!

It appears Eddie missed a Margaritaville on his pilgrimage

I just checked Marine Traffic and she's actually still in service! What crap! Jimmy would've been ashamed of this vessel bearing his likeness!

I was Navy for over 20 years. We ate quite well and kept a clean ship. At 5'4" I would be a monster of an inspector, being able to fit in places where most can't.

I literally just went on a work/employee cruise on this boat... at the same time you were releasing this video. It was actually pretty fun and not overcrowded. It was a bit of a snooze fest but nice to get away.

I don't really have any interest in cruise ships, but I actually love this channel. The way you present the information and the effort you put into the videos make it a very enjoyable watching experience. 50/50